Said Vikings coach Leslie Frazier of TE Kyle Rudolph, “You know, we were concerned from a blocking standpoint, and believing it would take a little bit longer than we thought, but he has shown a toughness that we knew he had but not to the degree that he has.”

Panthers coach Ron Rivera hopes to know who his starting quarterback will be after this weekend.

Said Saints QBDrew Brees of C Olin Kreutz, “I’ve been very impressed with how he’s stepped in. You look at him now and it’s as if they’ve been together for a long time. I think he brings out a lot of good things in the two guards and the same is true the other way around – they help him out in a lot of ways. The combination of all those guys, the more reps they get together, the more success we can all have together.”

According to Dick Vermeil, the Rams would have never won the Super Bowl under the current practice rules.

Said 49ers TE Vernon Davis, “Everybody knows we’ve had a problem with the offensive coordinators in the past, but I can honestly say that this right here is what we’ve been looking for. It’s the answer. I strongly believe it’s the answer.”

Nate Livings of the Bengals looked really bad against the Lions’ defensive line, last week. In his defense, that’s not going to be something unique in the league this year, but if Andy Dalton is going to last 16 games, of which four are two each against the Steelers and Ravens, it’s clear that the Bengals are right to be concerned.

Livings was essentially a swinging door against the Lions’ tackles, and it wasn’t just Ndamukong Suh doing the damage. Sammy Hill, a Lions’ reserve DT, slapped Livings down, took his lunch and ate it, and then chased Jordan Palmer pretty nearly out of the stadium.

Livings might be out of shape, but he needs to step up his game. The Bengal’s cupboard is not well stocked with offensive linemen, and he has to produce, if for no other reason than to keep Dalton alive until the kid gets up to speed.

As a side note, after the first two series, Dalton didn’t look totally lost, and even after the near-beheading by Suh, he got right up and called a play. Tough kid, and I doubt Carson Palmer was made any happier by his performance.

Coach is right about the new practice rules. Think of all the undrafted players and even late rounders that simply won’t get a chance to show what they can do or even get better because of the time constraints.

scudbot says:Aug 19, 2011 10:26 AM

Deep in the catacombs beneath Soldier Field, Dr. Martz has discovered that the “I’m rubber, you’re glue” role reversal experiment on Cutler and Williams has failed.